Caldigit raid array - Dulce raid array

[Tom Daigon]

In my transition from Mac Pro to HP Z820 I realized in order to maximize use of the Mercury Playback engine, I was going to need to upgrade my raid.

A week ago I took delivery of the Caldigit HD Pro 2 16TB. system. It was very well made. But there were two issues that were problematic. The speed from the system did not match up to what I was getting with my old Mac Pro and Maxx Digital setup. Eric Bowen(ADK) warned me that the PC's NTFS system didn't perform as fast as the OSX hard drives. The write speed was within 100 points but the read speed was off by about 300. And this system boasts that its PCIE card in combination with its Intel processor create a system that is a speed demon.

But what really was the final straw was the fan noise. The PSU has a very loud fan that is not controlled by a thermostatic device, its on full speed all the time. I used it in 2 sessions with clients and both complained how loud it was. Since I keep it next to the computer not in a machine room, this just wasn't going to work.

So Safe Harbor once again was a great help in making the return of the Caldigit raid as smooth as possible. I had researched the Dulce Pro DQg2 16TB system and even exchanged emails with current users. Im hoping when I take delivery on Tuesday that it will be just what I needed.

[Jeff Kilgroe]

Tom, I've found the Dulce systems to be comparable to the CalDigit. You may have better luck with it depending on which host controller you use to drive it. FWIW, the MaxxDigital is still the nicer / higher performing unit. How come you didn't go that direction again?

NTFS can be a bit slower at times vs. OSX (HPFS+ file system), but there's also more going on with it below the surface. Not necessarily better, just a different design. All things being equal, you should not see the disparity you have posted about. That comes back to the implementation and design of the RAID more than anything. CalDigit makes some nice products that are priced competitively, but they're definitely not the end-all, be-all when it comes to top performance or top reliability.

[Tom Daigon]

I still have the Maxx Digital for my Mac Pro. But I didnt buy one for the PC because...

1. No cooling fans (quiet but gets hot)
2. Report of issues with the Areca drivers they still are using with the newer models.
3. Wanted the faster PCIE connections (and better performance as drives fill) that are result of technology (processors/memory) built into raid.

I really wanted to compensate for the slowdown due to NTFS, which was info that came from a very experienced system builder whose opinion I highly respect.

There is a chance that adding to the issues of slower read/write speed could be how I have the PC configured (i.e., firewall, etc.). I will research that when I get the unit on Tuesday.